March
17, 2009
The Montgomery County School Board met on the above date at the administrative building at 6:30 p.m. for the purpose of a work session.
Board Members Present
B. Wendell Jones, Chair Penny J. Franklin
Phyllis T. Albritton W. Wat
Jamie M. Bond Joseph T. Ivers, Jr.
David G. Dunkenberger, II
Staff Members Present
Tiffany Anderson, Superintendent
Judith K. Barylske Mark J. Pasier
Kathy A. Duncan Carol A. Reynolds
Harvey C. Goodwin Rochelle
Lois T. Graham Walter L.
Anita P. Johnston Nelson W. Simpkins
Katie Miano Brad
King, Attorney
Diane R. Naff
Call
to Order
Mr.
Jones called the meeting to order with the pledge of allegiance to the flag at
6:30 p.m.
Adoption of Agenda
On motion by Ms. Franklin, seconded by Mrs. Albritton, the Board voted unanimously to adopt the agenda as presented.
Closed Session
Mrs. Albritton
moved, seconded by Ms. Franklin, and the Board voted unanimously to enter into
a closed meeting pursuant to Section 2.2-3711(A) of the Code of Virginia
at 6:31 p.m. for the purpose of discussion of the following specific matters:
Student
Matter: Discussion or consideration of a
student disciplinary matter, as authorized by Section 2.2-3711 (A)(2) of the Code
of Virginia.
Legal
Matters: Consultation with legal counsel
regarding specific legal matters requiring legal advice by counsel, as
authorized by Section 2.2-3711(A)(7) of the Code of Virginia.
Personnel Matters: The discussion or
consideration of prospective candidates for employment; assignment;
appointment; promotion; performance; demotion; salaries; disciplining or
resignation of specific public school officers, employees or appointees, as
authorized by Section 2.2-3711 (A)(1) of the Code of Virginia.
Return to Open
Session and Certification
Ms. Franklin
moved, seconded by Mr. Ivers, and the Board voted unanimously to return to open
session at 7:30 p.m.
Dr. Hopkins moved,
seconded by Ms. Franklin, and the Board adopted the following resolution:
WHEREAS, the County School Board of
Montgomery County has convened a closed meeting on this date pursuant to an
affirmative recorded vote and in accordance with provisions of the Virginia
Freedom of Information Act; and
WHEREAS, Section 2.2-3711(d) of the
Code of Virginia requires a certification by this School Board that such
closed meeting was conducted in conformity with Virginia Law;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED
that the County School Board of Montgomery County hereby certifies that, to
the best of each member’s knowledge (i) only public business matters lawfully
exempted from open meeting requirements by Virginia law were discussed in the
closed meeting to which this certification applies, and (ii) only such public
business matters as were identified in the motion convening the meeting were
heard, discussed, or considered.
Ayes: Phyllis T. Albritton W. Wat
Jamie
M. Bond Joseph T. Ivers,
Jr.
David
G. Dunkenberger, II B. Wendell Jones,
Chair
Penny
J. Franklin
_________________________ March 17, 2009
Clerk
of the
Action
Mr.
Dunkenberger moved, seconded by Ms. Franklin, and the Board voted unanimously
to expel student A from Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS).
The Price’s Fork Elementary School Orff
Ensemble performed for the School Board in recognition of Youth Art Month and
Music in Our Schools Month in March.
Kathy Duncan, Fine Arts Supervisor, presented the Board with pitch pots
made by students at
Honors, Awards and Recognitions
Continuing
the commitment of recognizing student achievement and accomplishments, four new
“Senior of the Month” selections have been made by high school principals in
Eastern
Derek
Smith, March Senior of the Month for EMHS, was not present and will be recognized
at a future School Board meeting.
Teresa
Helms, a teacher at BHS, was recognized by the Board for receiving the 2009
Siemens Award for Advanced Placement.
The
CHS wrestling team was recognized for winning its eighth consecutive Group AA
State Championship. The School Board
recognized the following members of the team:
State
Devin Carter Brady Epperly Keith Kraft
Rich Eva James Linkous Shawn Quesenberry
Derek Woody Braden Carter Garret Dowdy
Jon Weber David
Cheney
Luke Rakes
Tyler Miles
Philip Dowdy
Daryl
Weber, Brian Shortridge, Chris Johnson, Ryan Broughman, Chase Lowe, Charles
Weber, and Shane Hall were also recognized for coaching the team.
The
Board recessed at 8:03 p.m. and reconvened at 8:17 p.m.
Public Address
Angie Cornett, President of the Montgomery County Education Association (MCEA), reminded Board members about the goals of the MCEA. Ms. Cornett told Board members that she is thankful for the federal stimulus funding, which will allow the school division to maintain all of its staffing positions. However, she urged the Board to reinstate salary step increases in the budget and to remember the group’s goal of providing paid health insurance for part-time employees.
Brownie Cauley, a member of the MCEA, urged the Board to reinstate middle school assistant principals to 12-month positions in the budget and protect department chair supplements.
Item 03/09-35 Personnel
Report: On motion by Ms.
Franklin, seconded by Mrs. Albritton, the Board unanimously voted to approve
the personnel report with an addendum.
The personnel report is attached and made a
part of the minutes as pages A1-A3.
Item
03/09-36 Payment of Bills: On motion by Mrs. Albritton, seconded by
Mr. Dunkenberger, the Board unanimously voted to approve the bills as
presented.
Operating Fund:
Utilities, 03/06/09, Ck. Nos. 454917-454939,
$263,442.53
Bills, 03/17/09, Ck. Nos. 454940-455166,
$213,151.07
Cafeteria:
Bills, 03/11/09, Ck.
Nos. 2848-2865, $83,924.38
Work Session
Ms. Franklin moved, seconded by Mrs.
Albritton, and the Board voted unanimously to enter a work session at 8:22 p.m.
Item 03/09-35 and Item 03/09-36
Item 03/09-37 Presentation on Southern Association of
Colleges and Schools (SACS)/Council on Accreditation and School Improvement
(CASI) and Six-Year Plan Update: Rochelle told Board members that an
eight-member team would be in the district on April 19-27, 2009 for the school
division review process. She noted that
the review team would like to meet with Board members on April 20. Rochelle urged Board members to let the
administration know if they would be able to attend on this date.
Lois Graham,
Director of Elementary Education, said the review team would be looking at the
school division’s mission and vision; involvement of stakeholders; strengths
and challenges; governance and leadership, teaching and learning; documentation
and results (data); resources and support systems; continuous improvement plan
(six-year plan); quality assurance; etc. during the visit.
Mrs. Albritton
asked if anything could be done to implement benchmark testing prior to third
grade. Dr. Graham responded that the
school division did purchase the second grade benchmark testing software in
preparation for next year.
Item 03/09-38 Discipline
Survey: Carol Reynolds, Coordinator of Section 504 and Board Discipline
Matters, provided the School Board with a presentation on the number and types
of discipline cases that have come before the Board in the past two years.
Nelson Simpkins,
Director of Secondary Education, briefed the Board about the processes in place
that have worked well and the challenges with student discipline.
Ms. Franklin expressed
her concern that there are inconsistencies in school buildings across the
district with how discipline is handled.
Dr. Anderson noted
that the implementation of electronic incident reporting forms has aided the
school division in this regard because all forms are forwarded to the directors
or the superintendent.
Item 03/09-37 and Item 03/09-38
Mr. Ivers stated
that the schools in
Dr. Hopkins said he
believes that policies should be implemented consistently; however, since each
case is different, he stated his belief that there will sometimes be
exceptions.
School Board
Attorney Brad King discussed with the Board different scenarios with regard to
discipline cases and the policy of zero tolerance.
Mr. Dunkenberger
stated that administrators need more guidance on this issue.
Mr. Ivers suggested
gaining input from the School Resource Officers (SROs) on the topic.
Dr. Anderson told
Board members she would set up a roundtable discussion with Board members and
the SROs; make sure the handbook and policies on discipline are reviewed with
principals; and look at having principals submit cases to the superintendent
for review prior to the cases coming before the Board.
Return to Regular Session
Dr. Hopkins moved, seconded by Ms. Franklin,
and the Board voted unanimously to return to regular session at 8:33 p.m.
Superintendent’s
Reports, Recommendations, and Announcements
Item 03/09-39 2009-2010 School Calendars (Action): Mrs. Albritton
moved, seconded by Mr. Dunkenberger to approve draft one (longer spring break)
of the 2009-2010 School Calendar.
Dr.
Hopkins expressed concerns about having a long spring break prior to testing.
Mrs.
Bond and Mr. Ivers said they would be voting against the motion because most of
the constituents they have heard from in their districts are opposed to the
longer spring break.
Item 03/09-38
(Continued) and Item 03/09-39
Ms.
Franklin stated that she would be voting in favor of the motion to see how the
longer spring break works in the school division.
Dr.
The Board voted four to three in favor of the
motion to approve draft one (longer spring break) of the 2009-2010 School
Calendar as amended. Voting in favor
were Mrs. Albritton, Mr. Dunkenberger, Ms. Franklin, and Mr. Jones. Voting against were Mrs. Bond, Dr. Hopkins,
and Mr. Ivers.
Dr. Hopkins moved, seconded by Mrs. Bond, to
approve draft one of the 2009-2010 12-Month Employee Calendar.
Ms.
The Board voted unanimously to approve the
2009-2010 12-Month Employee Calendar as amended.
Item 03/09-40 School
Board Retreat (Action): Board members discussed various options and dates
for the retreat.
Mr.
Ivers moved, seconded by Ms. Franklin, and the Board voted six to one to hold
the retreat on July 10-11, 2009 at the
Item 03/09-41 Winning
Choices Resolution (Action): Ms. Franklin moved, seconded by Mrs.
Albritton, and the Board voted unanimously to approve the Winning Choices
Resolution.
The resolution is
attached and made a part of these minutes as page B1.
Item 03/09-39
(Continued), Item 03/09-40, and Item 03/09-41
Item 03/09-42
Item 03/09-43 Supplemental
Appropriation (Action): Mrs. Albritton moved, seconded by Dr. Hopkins,
and the Board voted unanimously to authorize a request to the Board of
Supervisors for a supplemental appropriation to the 2008-2009 School Operating
Budget, Code 610000, Instruction, in the amount of $224,861; Code 620000,
Administration, Attendance, and Health, in the amount of $14,521; and Code
650000, Non-Instruction, in the amount of $56,202.
Unfinished Business by School Board Members
·
Strand Meetings on Internet Predators – Dr. Anderson told Board members that there
is a meeting on this topic scheduled in the
New Business by School Board Members
Mrs.
Bond said she would like the Board to discuss allowing part-time employees to
receive their sick leave up-front. Mr.
Jones noted that this would be part of budget discussions.
Mrs.
Albritton stated that she would like to hear a presentation on the family life
curriculum.
Ms. Franklin moved, seconded by
Mrs. Bond, and the Board voted unanimously to move the April 7 School Board
meeting to April 14 since some Board members would be attending the National
School Boards Association (NSBA) Conference.
Item 03/09-42 and Item 03/09-43
Dr. Hopkins moved, seconded by
Mr. Dunkenberger, and the Board voted six to one with great regret to release the
superintendent from her contract at her request effective June 30, 2009 for
personal reasons. Voting in favor were
Mrs. Albritton, Mrs. Bond, Mr. Dunkenberger, Dr. Hopkins, Mr. Ivers, and Mr.
Jones. Voting against was Ms. Franklin.
Announcements/Information
Mrs.
Albritton thanked the art students for the artwork in the resource room.
Mr.
Ivers said he attended the CHS art exhibit at the
Mr.
Dunkenberger announced that the
Mr.
Dunkenberger thanked everyone for their well wishes and flowers at this
grandmother’s funeral.
Mrs. Albritton noted
that there is another music program at CHS this weekend.
Agenda
Preparation
April 21, 2009 Senior Recognition
Recognition of BHS Group AA State Championship Winners and Runner-Ups in Indoor Track, Wrestling, and Swimming
Special Education Annual Plan (Information)
Student Congress Presentation
May 5, 2009 Special Education Annual Plan (Action)
Adjournment
The
meeting was adjourned at 10:05 p.m. on motion by Ms. Franklin, seconded by Mrs.
Albritton, and passed unanimously.
School Board Chair Clerk of the School Board